Plans are for the team to use 6K Additive’s Ni718 powder to make an industrial component on a laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing (LPBF AM) machine supplied by the company and trace the part’s carbon footprint from material through AM process and post processing.
“There are conflicting views on AM regarding its environmental impact compared to traditional manufacturing,” said Dr Jasmin Saewe, head of department laser powder bed fusion at Fraunhofer. “The goal [of] this study is to analyse factual data to help us understand the real environmental impact for printing a metal AM part using LPBF. We also thought it was extremely important to evaluate the entire process, including powder manufacturing, which is why we partnered with 6K Additive.”
In two previous LCA projects, 6K Additive says that using its Ni718 powder in its UniMelt 3D printer delivered a 91% energy reduction and 92% carbon emission reduction when compared to traditional processes.
